Fishways are installed worldwide to facilitate accessibility to functional habitats and to increase the ecological continuity of rivers. Their evaluations are increasing, but complete studies in the field with wild individuals are still scarce. In the lower Bocq River (Belgium), a pool type fishway was installed in 2011. A combined passive-integrated-transponder-tag and radio-telemetry system was designed and installed downstream of the dam and in the fishway to analyse fine-scale individual fish behaviour. Three fish species (brown trout, European grayling, and barbel) were captured in the river; n = 125 fish were tagged and released downstream of the fishway. Behavioural metrics were proposed and used in order to attain a comprehensive view on the efficiency of the fishway, including attraction and entrance efficiency, searching and passage delays, and overall and adjusted passage efficiency. The results indicate a major problem in terms of attraction efficiency (48.9% for the trout, 20.5% for the grayling, and 41.2% for the barbel) and time to find the entrance of the fishway (mean 65.1 hr for the trout and 538.9 hr for the grayling).For fish that succeed to approach the entrance of the fishway, the passage efficiency was 86.9% for the trout, 55.5% for the grayling, and 7.1% for the barbel. The time taken to cross the structure was reasonable for the salmonids (mean < 1.5 hr for trout and grayling) but very long (21 hr) for the barbel. Our results underline the necessity of a holistic approach to evaluate fishway efficiency using precise comprehensive metrics and hydraulic characterization.

Behavioural effects of infrasound on cyprinids were tested. In Lake Borrevann, Norway, acute avoidance responses, at a distance up to 10 m from a 16 Hz infrasound projector were revealed by echosounding. At 10 m distance, a coarse estimate of the stimulus level (measured as the acceleration component of the particle motions) was c. 10 À3 m s À2 . Habituation was not evident during these tests. Two synchronized infrasound units were also installed 6 m apart in front of a cooling water intake of a nuclear power plant on the River Meuse, Belgium. Echosounding was used to compare the number of fishes entering the intake canal during on-off infrasound sequences. Relative to off-periods, the reduction of the number of fishes entering during on-periods was >80% at a distance of 0-12 m from the units. A significant reduction of 48% was observed considering the whole width (54 m) that was monitored. Fish impingement on the mechanical screens during the study revealed that >90% of the fishes entering the intake were cyprinids.

Understanding species-specific flight behaviours is essential in developing methods of guiding fish spatially, and requires knowledge on how groups of fish respond to aversive stimuli. By harnessing their natural behaviours, the use of physical manipulation or other potentially harmful procedures can be minimised. We examined the reactions of sea-caged groups of 50 salmon (1331±364 g) to short-term exposure to visual or acoustic stimuli. In light experiments, fish were exposed to one of three intensities of blue LED light (high, medium and low) or no light (control). Sound experiments included exposure to infrasound (12 Hz), a surface disturbance event, the combination of infrasound and surface disturbance, or no stimuli. Groups that experienced light, infrasound, and the combination of infrasound and surface disturbance treatments, elicited a marked change in vertical distribution, where fish dived to the bottom of the sea-cage for the duration of the stimulus. Light treatments, but not sound, also reduced the total echo-signal strength (indicative of swim bladder volume) after exposure to light, compared to pre-stimulus levels. Groups in infrasound and combination treatments showed increased swimming activity during stimulus application, with swimming speeds tripled compared to that of controls. In all light and sound treatments, fish returned to their pre-stimulus swimming depths and speeds once exposure had ceased. This work establishes consistent, short-term avoidance responses to these stimuli, and provides a basis for methods to guide fish for aquaculture applications, or create avoidance barriers for conservation purposes. In doing so, we can achieve the manipulation of group position with minimal welfare impacts, to create more sustainable practices.

The equipping of barriers with fishways has useful applications for testing hypotheses of fish migration and connectivity in river networks, but multiple passage performance for potamodromous fish is poorly known to date. The aim of this study was to analyse the performance of new fishways installed in the river Vesdre (Belgium). Thirty-eight barbel (Barbus barbus; mean: 508 mm, 2133 g) and seven chub (Squalius cephalus; mean: 372 mm, 935 g) were captured by electric fishing and fish pass monitoring and were equipped by RFID-tags and/or radio-transmitters. They were translocated downstream of three different fishways (nature-like pool-type, block ramp, and technical pool-type) in the lower course of the Vesdre. Detection antennas connected to automatic receivers were placed downstream and upstream of each fishway to evaluate the approaching rate, the overall and adjusted passage efficiencies, the passage delays, temperature, dates and time period. The best passage performance and passage delays were observed for the block ramp fishway (88%; 9 h median time to pass) in comparison with pool structures (47 and 73%; 94 and 144 h median time to pass, respectively). The overall passage efficiency was 18.2 and 29.4% for two successive fishways, and 18.2% for three fishways. Passages occurred mainly during dark periods at median temperatures of 14°C (barbel) and 12.3°C (chub), and during highly variable flow conditions. This study provided evidence of the success rate of the reestablishment of the ecological continuity in the river Vesdre as a result of the construction of improved fish-passage structures.

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